Does reform want to abolish the equality act 2010
Executive summary
Reform UK’s published “Contract” and policy documents explicitly pledge to replace or eliminate the Equality Act 2010 and to scrap Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI) rules, framing the Act as economically harmful and as requiring “positive action” that they equate with discrimination [1] [2] [3]. Multiple media outlets and policy summaries covering the 2024–25 campaign record Reform’s clear commitment to overhaul or repeal the current Equality Act framework, though the party has provided few legislative details about how replacement would work in practice [4] [5] [6].
1. Reform’s stated position: abolish and replace the Equality Act
Reform UK’s manifesto-language across outlets and its own policy pages repeatedly states a pledge to replace or “eliminate” the Equality Act 2010 and to scrap DEI rules; the party presents the Act as imposing “positive action” that it calls discriminatory and as a drag on economic productivity [3] [1] [5]. Reform’s own policies and commentary tied to its election “Contract” frame these as deliberate, programmatic aims of the party’s legislative agenda if it gains power [7] [4].
2. How consistent is that messaging across reporting and the party’s pages?
Coverage by specialist law and HR outlets, LGBTQ+ press and election analysts all record the same pledge: Reform has repeatedly said it would replace the 2010 Act and abolish DEI rules, and those claims are echoed on Reform’s own pages and in its manifesto [2] [6] [7]. The alignment between Reform’s published policies and independent reporting is strong: both the party’s materials and multiple newspapers and NGOs note the intention to overhaul or remove protections established by the Act [4] [8].
3. What would replacing the Act actually mean — and what’s left unsaid?
Sources show Reform’s rhetoric about the Equality Act focuses on criticisms — costs to business, “lawyers printing money,” and harms from “positive action” — but the party’s documents and media summaries do not lay out detailed replacement legislation or transitional mechanisms, leaving an evidentiary gap about how rights protections would be preserved or rescinded in practice [8] [1] [2]. Legal commentators warn that repealing or replacing the Act would raise significant questions of legal certainty and complexity, and that doing so without detailed plans risks destabilising employment and discrimination law [1].
4. Legal and practical constraints flagged by experts
Employment law analysts and lawyers have cautioned that removing or replacing the Equality Act would be legally fraught and could have “devastating” effects on legal certainty for employers and employees, a point raised in commentary on earlier government proposals of a similar tenor [1]. The Equality Act is primary legislation that consolidates many discrimination protections and public duties, so wholesale repeal would require primary legislation and complex transitional arrangements [9] [10].
5. Political motive and agenda: culture-war framing and policy priorities
Reform situates the proposed replacement of the Equality Act within a broader cultural and political agenda: rolling back what it calls “woke” ideology, banning “transgender ideology” in schools, mandating single-sex facilities, and leaving the European Convention on Human Rights — a package framed to appeal to voters who prioritise national sovereignty and cultural conservatism [4] [6] [7]. Critics and advocacy groups interpret these pledges as targeted at reducing protections for marginalised groups, particularly trans and LGBTQ+ people, and as part of a political strategy to mobilise culture-war voters [5] [8].
6. The broader equality-law context and what the Act currently does
The Equality Act 2010 harmonises prior discrimination laws, establishes protected characteristics and duties for public bodies, and has been described in official guidance as a framework to promote fair treatment and equal opportunities across public life — a baseline that Reform proposes to dismantle or replace [9] [11]. Independent election analyses and equality organisations note that other parties either seek to uphold or extend the Act’s protections, underscoring how distinct Reform’s proposal is within the UK party landscape [12] [13].
Conclusion
All available reporting and Reform’s own policy statements indicate a clear intent by Reform UK to abolish or replace the Equality Act 2010 and to end DEI regimes; that intent is explicit in the party’s manifesto/contract and echoed across specialist and mainstream press, but the party has not supplied detailed legislative blueprints and legal commentators warn of substantial practical and legal challenges to such an effort [3] [4] [1]. Where sources do not specify the exact legislative architecture Reform would adopt in place of the Equality Act, this analysis notes that absence rather than speculate about unreported details [2] [8].